Broken Trust: Deal Makers and Heart Breakers

Deceivers (a.k.a. Bargainers)
Deceivers are humanoid, and often look just like humans, at least at first. They go around offering aid to others, making bargains and deals. That’s why they are often called bargainers instead. Deceivers are in it for the long haul. They’ll offer you almost anything for a favor. If you do the task they set, you eventually get what you want. They often hold onto favors for years, showing up to call in their markers out of the blue. They still can’t make you perform the task, but if you don’t things may not go your way.

Once they have you in their pocket they bind you to that particular task. They could probably change the deal, but nearly always refuse to. So if you want what you asked for or were offered, you’ve got to give up that favor. It’s a magical contract sort of thing. If you hold up your end, they have to hold up their end. However, they often worm the spirit of the deal out of you, and offer you the letter in return. Deceivers get ecstatic when someone completes a deal for them.

They also seem to enjoy making their pawns squirm with the favors they choose. It doesn’t do anything for them, but it gets the sick bastards off. So if you run into a deceiver, you’ll know you’re in trouble right after it’s too late. Their eyes flash bright red when someone seals a deal with them. Until then, you just have to use your head and hope that sweet old lady that shows up with a bottle of penicillin doesn’t need you to kill someone for the medicine you need to get over the flu.

Physical combat with Deceivers is futile, they turn into smokey flame when attacked unless locked in place first, and you can’t attack one while you owe it a favor, so unless you’ve got friends, that’s a no go option. However, they have an achilles heel. They can’t refuse an offer when it appears they need help. So if you do them a service without making a deal, they have to offer up compensation. If you don’t take it, they waste away to nothing, becoming more and more desperate until you either cave in and accept the payment, or they cease to exist. However, who alive today does things out of the goodness of their heart for strangers?

Incubi (a.k.a. Charmers)
I call these bastards by their proper name because I don’t ever want to get on one of their bad sides. The Incubi are the only demons you can have a reasonable unguarded conversation with and expect to live. See they claim lust, either directly or indirectly. It makes them more powerful, and that’s all they want. They don’t care about evil in the slightest, so they are actually pretty fair-minded when their hedonistic desires don’t go overboard.

I mean you could go to an incubi den to imbibe and get some entertainment for the evening and end up a charred corpse in the damn thing’s bed. If you can control the feelings in your pants you can avoid that fate every time, but it’s damn hard if the incubus chooses you for the evening. They reek of sex and have an aura of attractiveness that few can truly resist.

Despite not having a martial agenda, nobody assaults an incubus without a good reason, because the damn things are capable of strong emotion projection. It’s good enough to bring hardened soldiers to their knees begging for the arms of their mommy. Then of course they are stronger than humans, and can do that same smoke body trick the Deceivers can. They are pretty much the top of the line in demons, underneath the overlords as it were, and even deceivers give them a wide berth when they stumble into one another. The last incubus I talked to told me that incubi aren’t too picky about their partners and here on Earth a night of passion is too much even for a fellow demon.

Deceivers
Abilities (Focuses)
+3 Communication (Bargaining, Deception)
+0 Constitution
+1 Cunning
+0 Dexterity
+3 Magic
+1 Perception
+1 Strength
+2 WillpowerCombat Ratings
Speed: 10, Health: 30, Defense: 10, Armor Rating: 0Weapons
NonePowersChangeling: Deceivers can appear as any humanoid of their choosing. This is a flawless physical disguise, although they still need to make rolls to fool people with their acting.Favored Stunts: Disarm and Skirmish.Honor the Deal: Any character who willingly enters into a deal with the Deceiver must hold up their end or suffer -2 penalty to all actions they initiate. They cannot attack or try to harm the contract holder.Incorporeal: Deceivers are incorporeal to attacks they are aware of. Normally only magical attacks can harm them, other attacks just past through their bodies. A character attacking a Deceiver can perform a special stunt called Spirit Bane for 3 SP. The character then inflicts half normal weapon damage but substitutes Magic for Strength or Perception. A character with Magic 2 and a bat that normally does 2d6 damage does 1d6+2 damage.Equipment: None

Incubus
Abilities (Focuses)
+2 Communication (Persuasion, Seduction)
+2 Constitution
+3 Cunning
+0 Dexterity
+4 Magic
+1 Perception
+4 Strength (Might)
+1 Willpower (Courage)Combat RatingsSpeed: 10, Health: 30, Defense: 10, Armor Rating: 0Weapons
Punch +0, 1d6+4PowersCloak of Desire: Incubi appear as an attractive human with pointed teeth, according to the taste of each viewer.Emotion Projection: As a major action, the Incubus can target a single target within line of sight. Target must succeed at a Willpower (Self-Discipline) test versus TN 14, or lose the ability ability to take any actions while the demon maintains the link. If they succeed, they still suffer a -1 penalty to any actions they initiate. Incubi can maintain this hold with a minor action.Favored Stunts: Disarm and Knock Prone.Incorporeal: Deceivers are incorporeal to attacks they are aware of. Normally only magical attacks can harm them, other attacks just past through their bodies. A character attacking a Deceiver can perform a special stunt called Spirit Bane for 3 SP. The character then inflicts half normal weapon damage but substitutes Magic for Strength or Perception. A character with Magic 2 and a bat that normally does 2d6 damage does 1d6+2 damage.Magical Lock Pick: The Incubus can use its Magic ability instead of its Dexterity ability when attempting to open locks or bypass security.Pheromones: Humans who are targeted for seduction by an Incubus suffer a -2 penalty to tests to resist.Equipment: None

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About Byron D. Molix

I am an information technology professional in Missouri. I've been an avid fan of fantasy and science fiction novels, comic books, pen and paper role-playing games, computer games and console video games for the last two decades. My dream would be to one day make a comfortable living while having the time to pursue writing (novels, rpgs, etc.) as a full-time hobby.